Deborah J. Levine

about this book: The South has a distinctive culture that can be deeply mysterious and constantly challenging to newcomers. GOING SOUTHERN is a Must-Have for New Southerners and those who work with them. Based on the my cultural anthropology training, my personal journey, and training of newcomers to the US Southeast, the book is both educational and entertaining. The Southern experience brought out the storyteller in me and an appreciation of the acculturation process the likes of which I hadn't experienced since coming to America as a child.

From France, cross-cultural trainer George Simons shares, "Deborah bases her insights on the history and attitudes of the South, particularly on the value of storytelling, showing how heritage enters everyday life.

From Germany, magazine editor Beate Ziehres shares her perspective from her years in Tennessee associated with Volkswagen Chattanooga, "In the old Southern tradition of telling stories, Deborah shares her magnificent knowledge and experience of the South with the unique kindness of the region. To me as a German part-time Southerner, her advice is worth gold."

Dr. Roger Brown, Chancellor Emeritus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, says "Ms. Levine's own family history and background prepared her to view her adopted Southern culture with appreciation for its rich idiosyncrasies, its ancient roots, and its importance to the success of travelers and immigrants from other parts of the world. Her insights are warm and vital because she delivers them in an engaging storytelling style that is itself an example of Southern culture."